Apparatus for aircraft-refueling in flight



D. W. GUIVER APPARATUS FOR AIRCRAFT-REFUELING IN FLIGHT Oct. 19, 1954 2Sheefs-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 20 1951 Oct. 19, 1954 D W. GUIVER APPARATUSFOR AIRCRAFT-REFUELING IN FLIGHT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 20 1951 wON aem qmym ATENT OFFICE UNITED STATES APPARATUS FOR AIRCRAFT-EEFUELINGIN FLIGHT Dennis William Guiver, Poole, England, assignor to FlightRefueiling Limited, London, England, a British company ApplicationSeptember 2%, 1951, Serial No. 247,506

Claims priority, application Great Britain September 27, 1950 Claims.((11. 244 435) 1 2 'This invention relates to an improvement or grooveof the nozzle or spigot. When the latches modification of the towingand/or flight-refuelare engaged, the pilot of the following aircraftling apparatus described in the specification of retracts the probe, atthe same time easing his c'opending U. S. application Serial No.153,198, aircraft forwards, and when the probe is fully hereinafterreferred to as the parent specifica- 5 retracted he opens thenozzle-valve or operates a tion. control to cause a latch-locking deviceto lock The apparatus described in the parent specifithe latches. (Inthe construction particularly cation comprises essentially a trailingconnectdescribed in the parent specification the nozzleing elementextended rearwardly from the leadvalve cannot be opened until the probeis fully ing aircraft and a rigid connecting member retracted.) (calleda probe) extended forwardly from the This construction exacts a seriousweight following aircraft; and one of these elements penalty on accountnot only of the weight of the terminates in a coupling socket havingspringtelescopic probe structure itself but also of the loaded latches,while the other element termioperating jack or motor, due to theconsiderable nates in a plug-like coupling member constitutinertia ofthe movable part of the telescopic ing a nozzle or spigot having anexternal circumprobe. Moreover, if the telescopic be Slime- .ferentialgroove engageable automatically by the ture is constituted as part of arefuelling system,

latches of the socket when the nozzle or spigot is satisfactorysolutions of the problem of sealing thrust into the socket. The trailingelement is the sliding joint against leakage are not easily eitherflexible being in the form of a hose or found.

hawser or is a jointed or universally mounted An object of the presentinvention is to protelescopic pipe or rod structure, of which the exvidean equivalent structure from t e 1 111 f tremity can swing verticallyand laterally, and view of the operational technique making use of it ispreferably provided with a drogue at or near a d, h -e t e D thusavoiding the its extremity which causes the trailing element, n ed forsliding s als and affor in a lighter or at least the terminal partthereof, to trail tructu e a d Operating mechanismsubstantiallyhorizontally. The improvement according to the present in- In the formof construction, to a modification vention consists essentially inreplacing the slidor improvement of which the present invention ing,extendable or ejectable and retractable relates, the plug-like couplingmember is mounted part of the probe by an external, slidably extendonthe probe and the socket on the trailing eleable and retractablestructure terminating in a ment. locating ring, preferably provided witha buffer- The socket may, however, be recessed into a ring of rubber 0 te l e S t e, t e DTObe rearward facing part of the leading aircraft asitself, with its terminal, plug-like coupling nozzle described in thespecification of co-pending U. S. or spigot, being a fixednon-extensible structure. application Serial No. 242,803, filed August21, In the retracted position, the locating ring sur- 1951. rounds thetip of the probe, and the flared mouth The parent specification alsodescribes a teleof the coupling socket carried by the leading airscopicform of probe comprising an outer fixed craft (or of a funnel-shapeddrogue unitary with tube and a slidable inner tube, which carries thethe socket) is wide enough to receive the locating nozzle or spigot andis movable by means of a ring. The latter, when in the extendedposition, motor-device, such as a hydraulic or pneumatic makes contactwith the interior of the socket jack. This construction is intended tobe opmouth and serves to locate the probe in line with erated asfollows: the following aircraft apthe socket, while the followingaircraft is eased. proaches the leading aircraft (tanker, receiverforwards relatively to the leading aircraft until or tug) from behindwith the probe retracted, the nozzle or spigot enters the socket and theand the pilot aims the probe at the socket latches engage the groove ofthe nozzle or spigot. mounted on the extremity of the element (hose, Inone form of construction, the locating ring pipe, hawser or towing rod)trailed by the leadmerely enters and makes contact with the mouth ingaircraft; and when the nozzle or spigot is of the socket or droguewhich, owing to air re- Separated f t So et by a short distance, lesssistance or drag, offers resistance to the locating than the stroke ofthe telescopic probe, the pilot ring and, as the following aircraftadvances after of the following aircraft extends or ejects the makingcontact, forces the ring back into the probe to insert the nozzle orspigot into the socket retracted position against the extending effortand spring the latches of the socket into the resiliently exerted by thejack or motor on the ring-supporting structure, an effort which must ofcourse be less than the drag forces experienced by the socket or drogue.The motor-device can of course, and will usually, be put into reverse toretain the ring in the fully retracted position, as soon as the nozzleor spigot is latched to the socket.

In a modified form of construction, the locating ring and the socket ordrogue are provided with self-engaging latching means operatingsimilarly to those of the socket and the nozzle or spigot, in which casethe ring may be positively retracted as soon as it has become latched tothe socket or drogue, retraction being assisted by easing the followingaircraft forwards.

Preferably, pneumatic power is used for extending and retracting thering-supporting structure, since the expansion of the working fluidenables rapid extension or ejection to be achieved without incurring anunduly'high rate of flow through the feed lines and valves, and becausethe fluid is expendable, rendering return circuits unnecessary.

By way of example only, a preferred form of construction is illustratedin the accompanying drawings, of which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the assembly comprising a non-extensibleprobe mounted in the nose of an aircraft and an extensible locatingring-supporting structure shown in the extended position;

Figure 2 is a scrap-section of a detail of Figure 1 (indicated thereonby arrow 2) Figures 3 and 4 are transverse sections on the lines 3-3 and4-4 respectively of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a partly sectioned side elevation of a coupling socket forreceiving the probe and locating ring of Figure 1.

In the form of construction illustrated, the rigid, forwardly extending,connecting member or "probe comprises a tube II) of a length such thatwhen the contact is established the socket 29 is in the correct positionrelatively to the aircraft. Towards its rearward end this tube II] issupported in any convenient manner on the aircraft structure so that theprobe projects forwardly in the line of flight through the skin II ofthe aircraft; and at the extreme rear the tube II! may be provided witha means for connection to the fuel system of the aircraft. The forwardend of the tube terminates in a tapered nozzle I2 having an externalcircumferential groove I3 and fitted with a fuel valve I4, which may beeither pneumatically, hydraulically or electrically operated, or in atowing spigot. In the example illustrated, the valve is operated by adouble-acting hydraulic jack (not illustrated) located inside the tubeII] and connected to pipes I5, I6 through unions I1, I8. Surrounding andsecured to the forward end of the tube I0, immediately to the rear ofthe groove l3, is a ring I9 having two lugs, one on each side of thetube, carrying spherically seated bushings 22 so positioned that tubularrods 2| fitted in them are normally parallel to and in the same plane asthe tube I0. A locating ring 22 furnished with a rubber buffer 23 isrigidly attached to the two rods 2|, which are slidably mounted in thebushings 2|) in such a manner that the rods 2| and locating ring 22 canbe extended forwardly from a position in which it surrounds theforwardend of the rigid connecting member or probe Ill, as indicated in dottedlines in Figure 1, through a short distance, e. g. 3 feet. The rods 2|are rigidly secured at an intermediate point of their length and attheir rearward ends respectively to supporting rings 24, 25, whichsurround the tube I0 and are provided with a number of lugs carryingyieldable or flexible rollers 26, which roll on the tube Ill and enablethe rings 24, 25, rods 2| and locating ring 22 to be moved backwards andforwards along the tube I5. In addition to lugs for attaching thesliding rods 2| to the supporting rings 24, 25 the supporting ring 24has a further lug to which is attached the piston rod 21 of a pneumaticjack whose piston (not shown) is of the self-aligning type or isarticulated to the rod 21. The cylinder 28 of the jack is secured tocollars 28 fixed to the tube I0. When pressure is applied to the rearside of the jack 21, 28 the locating ring 22 will be extended or ejectedand when pressure is applied to the front side of the jack, the ring 22will be retracted.

Slight misalignment of the locating ring 22 on making contact with thesocket or drogue of the leading aircraft is compensated by the spheri!cally seated bushings and by yielding of the flexible rollers 26; andshock-loading of the slidable assembly 2| to 25 and the probe tube I0,consequent on a misaligned contact, is damped by the flexible rollers26, while the self-aligning piston or articulated piston rod of thepneumatic jack 21, 28 accommodates slight misalignment of the supportingring 24 to which the piston rod 21 is secured.

The coupling socket trailed by the leading aircraft for receiving thelocating ring 22 and probe tube I0 is illustrated in Figure 5 andcomprises a socket body 29 and a hollow conical extension 35constituting a drogue. It is provided with latch levers 3|] terminatingin rollers 3|, the levers being pivoted on the socket body 29 and loadedby spring plungers 32 to extend through slots in the socket wall andthereby cause the rollers 3| to engage the groove H of the nozzle |2 asfully described in the parent specification. It is further provided witha second similar set of pivoted latch levers 33 loaded by springplungers 34 to extend inwardly and trap the locating ring 22, the endsof the levers 33 being so shaped that the ring 22 can spring the leversapart and pass them as it advances, whereupon the levers spring back andengage behind the ring and trap it.

The coupling socket instead of being trailed by the leading aircraft onthe end of a flexible hose or jointed pipe, as described in the parentspecification, may be recessed into a rearward facing part of theaircraft as described in the specification of co-pending U. S.application Serial No. 242,803.

I claim:

1. In an aircraft, a non-extensible elongated, rigid connecting memberextending forwardly from the aircraft substantially in the line offlight and terminating in a forwardly facing, plug-like coupling memberinsertable in a coupling socket carried by another aircraft, whichsocket is provided with a spring-loaded latching member, said plug-likecoupling member having a tapered extremity and a circumferential groovefor engagement by said spring-loaded latching member of the couplingsocket, and in combination with said rigid connecting member a rigidlocating ring, means for slidably mounting said locating ring on saidconnecting member for movement between a retracted position, in whichsaid ring surrounds the forward end ofsaid connecting member, and anextended position in which said ring lies in front of the forward end ofsaid connecting member and concentric therewith, and power-operatedmeans operatively connected to said mounting means for retracting andextending said locating ring.

2. The combination as defined in claim 1, in which the mounting meansfor the locating ring comprises rods disposed parallel to the rigidconnecting member, said locating ring being attached to the forward endsof said rods, a supporting ring attached to said rods and rollersmounted on said supporting ring in resilient, rolling contact with saidconnecting member; the combination further including a ring member fixedto said connecting member, bushings supported by said last-named ringmember, said rods being slidable in said bushings and said supportingring surrounding said connecting member rearwardly of said bushings, andbeing operatively connected to the mentioned power-operated means.

3. The combination as defined in claim 2 including a second supportingring surrounding said rigid connecting member and attached to therearward extremities of said rods, and rollers mounted on said secondsupporting ring in resilient, rolling contact with said rigid connectingmember.

4. The combination claimed in claim 1 in which said power-operated meansfor retracting and extending the locating ring comprises a pneumaticjack, the opposite ends of which are respectively operatively connectedto a fixed part of the aircraft and to said locating ring.

5. In an aircraft, for cooperation with a nonextensible elongated, rigidconnecting member and an extensibly mounted locating ring embodied inanother aircraft; a coupling socket for receiving the forward end of therigid connecting member, said socket being provided with a spring-loadedpivoted latching member engageable with the circumferential groove ofthe rigid connecting member and with another springloaded, pivotedlatching member engageable with the locating ring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,183,719 Bird May 16,1916 2,141,536 Kelton Dec. 27, 19382,199,588 Cobham et al May 7, 1940 2,596,455 Williams et al May 13, 1952

